Assessing some heavy metals pollutions in sediments of the northern Persian Gulf (Bushehr province)

Background: Land and water pollution by heavy metals is a universal issue. Although the pollution affectsall countries, but its range and severity vary hugely. The pollution of the marine environment by heavymetals is a worldwide problem. Marine sediments can be sensitive indicators for monitoring contaminantsin aquatic environments.Methods: The concentration of 10 elements (As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Al, Fe, Ni, Pb, Sb, and Zn) was determinedin the sediments of four shoreline stations including Imam Hassan port, Ameri port, Bushehr port, andNayband Bay at the west Persian Gulf from March to December 2017. The elements were measured byinductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). Data were analyzed using SPSS version 16.Results: The contamination of the sediments was assessed based on the geoaccumulation index (Igeo) andenrichment factor (EF). Spearman correlation matrix was calculated between all the trace metals and majorelements as well as corresponding sampling regions. Statistically significant inter-elemental correlations(e.g., Cr-Fe, Cr-Al, Cr-Ni, Cr-Zn, and Cr-Cu) were found between some metals. High EF levels for Fe,Al, and Pb suggest that metals in the sediments of the northern Persian Gulf could have originated fromanthropogenic sources.Conclusion: The contamination pattern of sediments is affected by factors such as sedimentation patterns,physical and chemical properties of the sediments. For example, sediments with fine-grained and highsurface area-to-volume ratio can act as good absorbents for many pollutants.

کلیدواژه ها:

Heavy metals ، Geologic sediment ، Persian Gulf ، Bushehr